A/N: Okay, I have decided that in terms of the gang's age, I'm just gonna wing it. BUT THAT'S NOT IMPORTANT ANYMORE. What's important is that I can't stay on the posting schedule I made for this story, and decided to post the third chapter today. I'm currently finishing up Chapter 19 and I just can't wait for you guys to read EVERYTHING, especially when things are beginning to get COMPLICATED on Chapter 19 ;) I'm so excited to give you guys all the chapters that I settled for posting the chapters whenever I feel like it.

Enjoy!

Chapter 3: Building Platforms

Because of how fast she adjusted to the nature of being an event coordinator, Maya arrived at Groucho's ten minutes before the time Josh set. Coming in early meant that she would be facing the consequence of having to wait for her company to arrive, which she didn't personally mind. Sometimes, it afforded her enough room to freshen up, boot her laptop, or claim a table for her and her client to use.

It wasn't long until the clock ticked to exactly six in the evening, but Josh had yet to make an appearance. Maya didn't pay attention to it because she understood that it was the rush hour when the workers were all getting off their jobs and making the commute home. She supposed her client was stuck in traffic.

As the lounge singer sang soulfully in the corner, Maya logged onto her email account and decided to open her unread messages. She browsed through them, trashing any junk mails in the process. Most of the emails she got were from new clients for Tan House Events and her other online subscriptions. After reading through the new clients' proposals, she forwarded the birthday party requests to one of her colleagues in charge of handling such events.

It was fifteen past six when Maya realized that Josh still hadn't arrived. She took out her phone and sent him a quick message, asking him if he still planned on showing up to their meeting. After, Maya called for a server and ordered herself a glass of iced tea. As soon as the server left with her order, a chime from her laptop notified her of a new email. Maya's heart pounded when she noted that it was a message from Canvas, the online hub for artists like her to showcase their artworks.

Maya immediately reopened her inbox window and double clicked on her most recent email.

NYC LENDS A HELPING HAND BENEFIT CONCERT

To: Maya Hart

From: Leigh Robinson

Good evening, Ms. Hart. My name is Leigh Robinson and I am the board director of NYC Lends a Helping Hand Committee, a non-profit organization established to raise awareness to the current issues involving our society, especially the youth. In light of recent events, my board members and I have decided to host a benefit concert to acknowledge those children who've been victims of violence. We wanted to do something enjoyable to show these children that they still matter and that they have a place within our community. The concert is expected to take place in February 2019 at Complex Sounds.

I saw your portfolio on Canvas and your work amazed me! My board members and I have chosen you as the artist we want to work with for the benefit concert. We need you to help us design posters, brochures, T-shirts, etc. If you accept our offer, please don't hesitate to reply and I'll fill you in with details about the benefit concert, as well as what we expect from you as our Creative Art Director.

I hope to hear from you soon, Ms. Hart. I am a big fan of what you can do. Have a great evening!

Thank you,

Leigh Robinson

NYC Lends a Helping Hand Committee Board Director

Maya felt thrilled about the new job offer. She wanted to jump and scream in celebration but thought against embarrassing herself in public. Instead, she clamped a hand over her mouth and let out the most reserved squeal she could muster. Someone recognized her art online and wanted to utilize her artistic skills for a righteous cause. It was enough for Maya's brain to go haywire with utter excitement.

Maya Hart, Creative Art Director, Maya thought with a contented sigh. The title sounded so euphoric in her head she wondered how it would feel if said out loud.

Just as Maya hit the reply button to tell Leigh that she wanted to work with her committee, Josh came barreling through the wooden doors of Groucho's. He spotted Maya and sped toward her, his excuse rolling off his tongue even before he reached her table.

"I know I'm twenty minutes late and I am so, so sorry," Josh apologized breathlessly. "Filomeno called for a last-minute meeting to talk about the magazine's next issue and I honestly didn't know it would take that long. And I know I should've replied to your messages—I wanted to slip my phone out to text you—but Filomeno kept walking behind me. My job is already hanging on the line I didn't want to jeopardize it even more."

Maya considered his reason. It was fair and sensible enough that she let it slide. Besides, it was only their first meeting. Any tardiness after that and she was gonna have to settle some rules with Josh.

"Just try to be more on time in the future," Maya told him as she opened her laptop. "What I'm helping you with is something that Tan House Events doesn't want to work on anymore, so I'm basically bending the rules just for you. I don't mean to come off as uptight, but please do consider what I'm trying to do here for you. I know it was just one tardiness, but—"

"I understand," Josh responded, nodding with urgency. "I'm sorry—again."

"Apology accepted," Maya replied. She was still experiencing the high from the job offer she received from Leigh Robinson that she couldn't find it in her to feel entirely displeased by Josh's tardiness.

Josh bit his lip, watching as Maya clicked buttons and typed a string of words on her laptop. "Listen, how about I make it up to you?" he suggested with an amiable smile.

Maya's eyebrows met in the middle. "I already accepted your apology."

Without saying anything, Josh raised an arm to grab the attention of a passing server. The server came over, and Josh asked for two bottles of beer.

"Josh, we're here to talk about your marriage proposal, not get drunk," Maya scolded, though she could feel the corners of her mouth twitching into a smile. To prevent the smile from fully spreading across her lips, she returned her attention to her laptop. She typed a few more information regarding Josh's marriage proposal case on the digital form opened in front of her.

"Who said anything about getting drunk?" Josh challenged.

"Oh, good, because nobody wants to see a drunk high school principal. That would be very traumatizing."

Josh laughed—an actual guffaw that made Maya feel amused and mortified at the same time. She surveyed the establishment to determine if anyone was watching them, but since Groucho's was a bar and grill, everyone else was engrossed with their own conversations.

"What's so funny?" Maya questioned.

"You're not really a high school principal, are you?" Josh asked, scrunching his nose at her.

Maya shook her head with a chuckle. "But I have friends that always tell me I dress like one."

"Some friends . . ."

Maya gasped. "Excuse you, at least they're being honest."

Josh raised his arms up in mock surrender. "I did not say anything," he uttered.

Their beers arrived and Josh was the first one to take a swig. "Here's a friendly tip for you," he stated. "You should never, ever go to Groucho's without—"

"Getting a beer, I know," Maya interjected. When she noticed Josh raising a questioning brow at her, she elaborated as to how she knew that. "I used to go here a lot with my friends when we were in college. My friend, Lucas, was—still is—obsessed with Groucho's beer. He said it was the maltiness that got him to move from Texas to New York. He's kidding, of course, because that's just ridiculous."

Josh grinned lopsidedly. "Good reason, but I personally think it's the bitterness."

Maya made a face as if to say if you say so, and reached for her own bottle to take the tiniest sip. She had no problem with drinking alcohol, but she wasn't into it as much as when she was younger. Besides, she still wasn't finished with the iced tea she ordered earlier.

"No way," Josh spoke suddenly, much to Maya's surprise.

Alarmed, Maya straightened in her seat and asked, "What? What is it?"

Josh pointed at a sticker plastered on Maya's laptop. "You went to NYU, too?" he demanded. "When did you graduate?"

"About three years ago," Maya answered while keeping her eyes trained on her laptop screen. She minimized the window that she was on and double-clicked on a new Word file. Taking a break from handling Tan House Events clients for over two weeks made Maya temporarily forget how many forms she had to fill out when working with a new client.

"Huh." Josh exhaled, leaning back in his seat and taking another swig of his beer.

"There's something wrong with this document," Maya muttered, her eyebrows furrowing. "Josh, when did you say was yours and Sophie's anniversary again? I need to document it, but this Word file isn't cooperating with me at the moment. I'll make a sticky note for it in case I forget."

"Nineteenth of February," Josh replied. When Maya nodded in response, he leaned his elbows on the table and edged toward her. "I graduated from NYU about the same time you did, but how come I didn't see you around campus?"

"I don't know, Josh," Maya stated distractedly, still focused on the Word document in front of her. She adjusted her laptop's position on the table so that it functioned as a wall between them.

"The most logical thing I could think of is that because we had different majors—obviously," Josh continued. He propped his elbow on the table, with his cheek resting on his palm. His eyes were still trained on Maya. "I mean, I was doing journalism and you were probably doing . . . whatever you call the major you had to take to learn how to coordinate events."

Maya sighed. It wasn't hard to conclude that Josh was a chatty individual. His mouth didn't seem to run out of words, which made sense because he wouldn't have made it as a journalist if he hadn't. But then again, she played a part in her current situation. She'd been busy with the important documents that she presented him the opportunity to replace what would have been an awkward silence between them with his endless string of words.

Maya finished with the documents in due time. When she noticed that Josh was busy taking a sip of his beer, she seized the opportunity to speak first. "Okay, so what do you have in mind for your proposal?" she inquired. "Just throw everything at me, never mind how ridiculous or pricey it is."

"See, that's the problem," Josh remarked, tapping his index finger on the rim of his beer bottle. "I don't know how or what I want to do. That's also the reason why I'm sitting across from you right now."

"Okay, so that definitely did not help—but that's all right, there's no rush. We're just getting started." Maya turned back to her laptop to double check the next few questions she needed to ask. "I need to know, though. Do you have a specific date as to when you want to propose? Or are we working freely here? Like, it doesn't matter when we get this proposal preparation done."

"I plan to propose on our sixth anniversary, which I just told you is on the nineteenth of February next year," Josh answered. "I could tell Sophie that we should lay low with our anniversary celebration next year—you know, just chill around the apartment and bask in one another's presence—when in reality, I'm actually planning to propose to her. She'll never suspect anything."

Maya nodded her head. "Good, at least now we have a deadline to work around."

Josh was quiet as Maya typed his responses on her laptop.

"Okay, so now I'm going to have to ask you to help me on this one," Maya enunciated. "We're going to build a platform, all right? Since you have no idea how you're going to propose, we're gonna start from the ground level, then we'll work our way up."

Josh nodded in agreement. "Sounds good to me."

"Let's start with Sophie. Tell me what she's like," Maya demanded. "Appearance-wise, personality-wise, what are her primary interests, what are her hobbies—things like that. Introduce me to her. Go."

Josh spun his bottle of beer. "For starters, Sophie is beautiful—absolutely gorgeous. Her hair's long and dark. She's got warm, brown eyes, which is unquestionably my most favorite thing about her, appearance-wise. She's like a princess, you know? The superhero's main love interest—the woman the hero would always fight hard for. Her face is so unbelievably regal that I have this weird theory in which I believe Sophie actually belongs to a royal family somewhere in a different part of the world," he narrated, chuckling. His gaze shifted somewhere over Maya's head, lost in a daydream.

"What else?" Maya goaded, fingers ready to type Josh's responses.

"She's smart, graduated early from college—a semester before I did, at least," Josh informed with a proud grin on his face. "I was an English major and she was in Business Management. You're from NYU, so you know that those two buildings are right next to each other. But, anyway, that's beside the point. We were already living together around the first year of our relationship. We rented an off-campus apartment because it was cheaper. Then again, that's also beside the point. What I was really trying to say is that Sophie graduated early from college, and ever since then, she'd taken over Miller Boutique. It's that clothing shop on Avenue Road right next to that Greek restaurant."

Maya's face lit up. "Hey, that's where my best friend gets all her pencil skirts tailored! I didn't know it was Sophie's. Last I heard, the place was owned by Francine."

"Francine passed it down to Sophie when she and her husband got divorced. The boutique has been Sophie's for a couple of years now," Josh informed, which he realized after was something he shouldn't have mentioned to Maya, especially on their first meeting. "How do you know Francine?"

"My best friend Riley's husband, Lucas, owns a company that afforded him an extensive series of connections all throughout New York City. And because I happen to be best friends with him, I get to know a lot of people through him," Maya explained with a wave of her hand. "I also know Linda, the front desk person at the boutique."

"And yet you don't know Sophie," Josh noted with a taunting smirk.

"You're right, I don't," Maya agreed. "Well, I don't actually go there all the time, so that's probably why I don't know your girlfriend. And even when I do tag along with Riley whenever she feels like getting a new skirt, it's always Linda that I see at the boutique."

Josh chuckled. "Yeah, Sophie really isn't a constant presence at the boutique recently," he stated as a certain emotion Maya couldn't identify crossed his features. "She's been traveling a lot, attending every fashion conventions in the country." He grabbed his bottle of beer and drank what remained inside.

Maya's bottle remained barely touched; it was still filled with alcohol all the way up to the bottle's neck. She noted that Josh didn't seem to acknowledge that she hadn't been drinking. If he did, he didn't make a show of it.

Josh's phone chimed from his pants' pocket, notifying him of a new message. He brought it out and inspected the text, his fingers typing a response within seconds.

While Josh was on the phone, Maya chanced a look at the time displayed on her laptop's screen. It was 7:30 in the evening. She didn't know they'd been holding this meeting for so long. But considering Josh was twenty minutes later, it imposed a setback in regards to the duration of their meeting.

"Sorry, that was Sophie," Josh announced after he pocketed his phone. "She was asking what time I would be home. She wanted to know if she should cook dinner or just order Chinese."

"Oh!" Maya declared. She closed her laptop shut and started bundling up her things. "You know what? Let's just call it a night. Our hour's almost up anyway, so it wouldn't really hurt if I let you go seven minutes early."

"Are you sure? I just told Sophie to order Chinese because I wasn't sure what time we were going to be done with our meeting—oh, and don't worry, I didn't tell her anything about meeting an event coordinator," Josh stated. He pulled out his phone again and plugged in his passcode. "I guess I'll just text her again and let her know I'm on my way home."

After Josh received Sophie's reply, he paid for the drinks he ordered and left Groucho's. Maya trailed after him, struggling to put on her navy blue beanie over her head. It was still November, but the weather felt like it was January, when the winter's unforgiving cold would rage mercilessly.

"Oh, Jesus," Maya muttered under her breath as her arms reflexively wrapped around her shivering body.

Josh turned to her and flashed her a modest smile. He was beginning to shudder, too. "So, I'm not going to be available for the next two days, but if I can get a lot of things done at the office by Friday . . . hmm, let me see." He paused as he mentally browsed through his schedule for the rest of the week. "Yep. Friday. I can meet you again on Friday night. I'm taking Sophie out on a date on Saturday, so Friday's really the only day that I can squeeze you in."

Maya nodded in accord. "Friday should work fine," she responded. "My schedule's full for the rest of the week anyway. I'm trying to make up for lost time at Tan House Events, so I'm going to have to accept new clients."

"That's good then," Josh commented.

"Yeah, that should keep me occupied until Friday," Maya stated. "Anyway, I gotta run to Topanga's. They have these new champagne cronuts with chocolate ganache that they only serve at nighttime because, obviously, we don't want cronut-drunk people walking 'round New York City in daylight."

"Topanga's?" Josh asked with curiosity.

"It's that coffee shop just around the block from the NYPD," Maya explained, tucking a loose strand of hair in her beanie as a cold breeze flew by. "It's fairly new that's why you probably don't know about it yet. It's a great place, though. Good food, amazing customer service—"

"Let me guess, you have connections with someone who owns the place?" Josh gauged, a grin spreading across his face.

Maya chuckled. "As a matter of fact, I do. My best friend's mother owns the place—oh, wait! That reminds me." She zipped open her cross-body bag, pulled out a small brown paper bag, and handed it to Josh. "They're probably squished by now, so I apologize."

Josh took the paper bag from Maya and opened it to examine the contents. "Thanks," he said. "What are these?"

"Only the best cronuts in the entire New York City," Maya answered proudly, wearing a gratified smile to accompany her enthusiasm. "They're exclusively available at Topanga's, so if you end up liking them and you want to get more, you know where to find them. Remember: it's just around the block from the NYPD."

"You want to know what I think? I think I might have to keep you around for a long time," Josh declared as he lifted the bag of cronuts Maya gave him.

"Oh, really? So you're planning on keeping me around even after all this stuff with the proposal is done?" Maya teased with a smile on her face.

Josh shrugged, returning Maya's grin with one of his own. "I'll have to invite the woman who helped me with the proposal to the actual wedding ceremony, don't I?" After a brief pause, he added, "And to get free cronuts, of course."

"That's what I thought," Maya replied.

Josh's phone chimed again, which gave him the indication that he had to get going. Maya, too, had to go if she wanted to score some of those champagne cronuts with chocolate ganache before they ran out. Those cronuts never last long on the shelves.

Maya took it upon herself to say goodnight first.

"Have a nice night, Ms. Hart," Josh replied with a small wave.

Josh turned on his heel and headed toward the right, while Maya started her path toward the opposite direction. She hadn't gotten that far yet when she decided to strike one last glimpse of Josh. A wide smile plastered on her face when she noticed that Josh was already looking back at her over his shoulder. He waved goodbye again using the hand that held the bag of cronuts, and Maya returned his gesture with a wave of her own.

"Don't be late, Mr. Matthews!" Maya reminded, referring to their scheduled meeting on Friday. She recognized that it was the same parting phrase she told Josh yesterday, and suddenly had a strong gut feeling that she would utilize it again and again.

"I'll try not to, Ms. Hart!"

And there you have it! I hope you guys enjoyed it, and don't forget to let me know what you think :)

P.S. I just want to thank the Joshaya fandom for being the sweetest and most supportive people! I appreciate you guys.